Former acting attorney general Sally Yates was notified earlier this month by the Justice Department that the Trump administration considers a great deal of her possible testimony to be barred from discussion in the House intelligence Committee's investigation between Russian officials and the Trump campaign, according to a series of letters reviewed by The Post.
Trump administration sought to block Sally Yates from testifying to Congress on Russia

Debevoise Debevoise Plimpton LLP

. 801 Avenue, N.W.Impton Washington. D.C. 20004

+1 202 383 8000

March 24, 2017

Donald F. McGahn II

Assistant to the President and White House CounselThe White House

1600 Avenue N.W.

Washington, D.C.

Dear Mr. McGahn:

I represent Sally Quillian Yates and write in reference to the attachedcorrespondence.

Ms. Yates has been invited to testify before the House Permanent SelectCommittee on Intelligence (HPSCI). The Committee has indicated that itsinvestigation will cover topics including the following: ?Russian cyber activitiesdirected against the US. election, potential links between Russia and individualsassociated with political campaigns, the US. Government?s response to theseRussian active measures, and related leaks of classi?ed information.?

In addition, Committee staff has informed me that questioning will focus onJanuary 2017 communications regarding concerns about the conduct of a seniorWhite House of?cial.

As I have informed the Committee and the Department of Justice, Ms. Yatesis willing to appear voluntarily with two other former intelligence of?cials. Inanswering the Committee?s questions, Ms. Yates obviously will not disclose anyclassi?ed information, nor will she provide any information that she believes couldinterfere with any ongoing criminal or intelligence investigations.

In the attached correspondence to the Department of Justice, I indicated thatMs. Yates is not, and should not be, obligated on privilege or other grounds to refuseto provide non?classi?ed facts about the Department?s noti?cation to the WhiteHouse of concerns about the conduct of a senior White House of?cial. I notedfurther that requiring Ms. Yates to refuse to provide such information is particularlyuntenable given that multiple current senior administration of?cials have publiclydescribed the same events.

Donald F. McGahn II 2 March 24, 2017

The Department of Justice indicated in the attached response that anycon?dentiality equity in this information belongs to the President and that Ms. Yatesdoes not need separate consent from the Department.

It is unclear whether the presidential communications or deliberative processprivileges could apply to the referenced information. In any event, any claim ofprivilege has been waived as a result of the multiple public comments of currentsenior White House of?cials describing the January 2017 communications.Nevertheless, I am advising the White House of Ms. Yates? intention to provideinformation in the manner described above.

If I do not receive a response by Monday, March 27, at 10 am EDT, I willconclude that the White House does not assert executive privilege over these matterswith respect to the hearing or other settings.

Regards,

A. w:

David A. O'Neil

Enclosures

De bevoi SE Debevoise Plimpton LLP

- 801 Avenue. N.W.Impton Washington. D.C. 20004

+1 202 333 8000

March 23, 2017

Samuel R. Ramer

Acting Assistant Attorney GeneralUS. Department of Justice

Of?ce of Legislative Affairs

Main Justice Building, Room 1145950 Avenue, NW.Washington, D.C. 20530

Dear Mr. Ramer:

I represent Sally Quillian Yates in connection with the attached letter fromthe House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) inviting Ms. Yatesto testify at a public hearing on March 28, 2017.

As you know, Ms. Yates served the Department of Justice with distinction forover twenty seven years, rising through the ranks from Assistant United StatesAttorney to First Assistant United States Attorney, and then to United StatesAttorney, Deputy Attorney General, and most recently Acting Attorney General.Throughout her career, Ms. Yates has unfailingly honored her professional andethical responsibilities.

The Committee has indicated that the hearing will cover topics including thefollowing: ?Russian cyber activities directed against the US. election, potential linksbetween Russia and individuals associated with political campaigns, the USGovernment?s response to these Russian active measures, and related leaks ofclassified information.? In addition, Committee staff has indicated that questioningwill focus on January 2017 communications regarding concerns about the conduct ofa senior government of?cial.

As communicated to Committee staff, Ms. Yates is willing to appearvoluntarily at the hearing on a panel with two other former intelligence officials. Inanswering the Committee?s questions, Ms. Yates obviously will not disclose anyclassi?ed information, nor will she provide any information that she believes couldinterfere with any ongoing criminal or intelligence investigations.

Samuel R. Ramer 2 March 23, 2017

The Department of Justice has advised that it believes there are furtherconstraints on the testimony Ms. Yates may provide at the HPSCI hearing.Generally, we understand that the Department takes the position that all informationMs. Yates received or actions she took in her capacity as Deputy Attorney Generaland Acting Attorney General are client con?dences that she may not disclose absentwritten consent of the Department.

We believe that the Department?s position in this regard is overbroad,incorrect, and inconsistent with the Department?s historical approach to thecongressional testimony of current and former senior of?cials. In particular, webelieve that Ms. Yates should not be obligated to refuse to provide non-classi?edfacts about the Department?s noti?cation to the White House of concerns about theconduct of a senior of?cial. Requiring Ms. Yates to refuse to provide suchinformation is particularly untenable given that multiple senior administrationof?cials have publicly described the same events.

In light of those public statements, it is unclear what con?dentiality intereststhe Department believes may still exist concerning these events. To the extent the

Department believes that consent is necessary to permit Ms. Yates to testify in themanner described above, we are hereby requesting it.

Regards,

?g 11. MAO

David A. O'Neil

Enclosure

UNCLASSIFIED. "in" us. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 53:32

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ON

Mimi

March 14,2017

The Honorable Sally Yates

c/o David A. O?Neil

Debevoise Plimpton

80] Avenue NW.Washington, DC. 20004

Dear Ms. Yates:

As part of its bipartisan, ongoing investigation into the Russian active measurescampaign targeting the 2016 US. election, the louse Permanent Select Committee onIntelligence invites you to testify at an open hearing beginning at l0:00 am. on Tuesday, March28, 2017.

The hearing may cover any topic within the publicly-announced parameters of theCommittee's investigation. including Russian eyber activities directed against the US. election,potential links between Russia and individuals associated with political campaigns, the US.Government?s response to these Russian active measures, and related leaks of classi?edinformation.

Please let the Committee know if you plan to participate no later than Friday, March 11?,2911. If you are able to attend, we will follow up with additional details regarding the locationand format of the hearing. If you have any questions regarding this invitation, please contactCommittee staff.

This responds to your letter of March 23, 2017, to Acting Assistant Attorney GeneralSam Ramer regarding the invitation of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence(HPSCI) to former Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates to testify at a public hearing onMarch 28,2017.

In particular, your letter pertains to Ms. Yates?s potential disclosure to HPSCI of ?non-classi?ed facts about the Department?s noti?cation to the White House of concerns about theconduct of a senior official.? We appreciate your meeting at the Department on March 23, 2017,to provide additional information about the details of these communications with the WhiteHouse that you believe may be responsive to Committee inquiries.

Ms. Yates seeks authorization to testify about communications she and a seniorDepartment of?cial had with the Of?ce of the Counsel to the President. Such communicationsare likely covered by the presidential communications privilege and possibly the deliberativeprocess privilege. The President owns those privileges. Therefore, to the extent Ms. Yates needsconsent to disclose the details of those communications to HPSCI, she needs to consult with theWhite House. She need not obtain separate consent from the Department.